


Green Is The New Hot

by strangeallure



Category: CW Network RPF, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gardens & Gardening, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-08
Updated: 2014-04-08
Packaged: 2018-01-18 16:34:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1435309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strangeallure/pseuds/strangeallure
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jensen has a choice: anger management therapy or gardening class. The more he gets to know Jared, his hot gardening instructor, the more he realizes he's made the right decision.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Green Is The New Hot

**Author's Note:**

> Written for zuben_eschamali’s prompt _In the Spring a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love_ at the silverbullets schmoop challenge. I once read an article about gardening as anger management therapy and Guerrilla gardening is real, too.
> 
> First posted on LJ in April 2012.

"You can't be serious!" Jensen's voice is almost at shouting level, and he hastily adds "your honor," in a quieter tone to make himself sound less like a dick. He watches TV; he knows how easy it is for a judge to hold you in contempt. 

"I assure you that I am _completely_ serious, Mr. Ackles," judge Devine says calmly, and Jensen has a strong feeling that there's something brewing under that serene exterior. "You committed four parking violations in the last two months, were fined three times for speeding, and in the latest photo taken by a speed camera, it looks a lot like you are giving a fellow driver the finger."

"I was just scratching my nose," Jensen mumbles, but the judge simply ignores him.

"So it's either three months of weekly gardening lessons or four months anger management therapy." Before Jensen can say anything else, she adds, "But if that's not to your liking, I can always assign you 60 hours of community service."

This time, Jensen stays quiet.

"So what is it going to be, Mr. Ackles?" she asks with a smile that looks disturbingly genuine. "The choice is all yours."

\--

Ten days later, Jensen is running late, frantically trying to find the right room in the enormous community center building. He really meant to be on time, but traffic was horrible, and then the parking situation was even more horrible, and because he definitely didn't want to risk another meeting with judge Devine, he made sure to find a clearly designated parking space, which took forever. 

When he finally reaches room 411B, he's fifteen minutes late and the room is empty. To be honest, Jensen's kind of relieved. Maybe the class has been canceled – how many people in the city could possibly want to take gardening lessons? But just as Jensen’s about to turn around and head back home, he sees a note that's scrawled onto the blackboard in big white letters: 

_Latecomers,_  
We're in the atrium.  
Come join us :) 

Jensen heaves a sigh, turns around and runs down three flights of stairs. When he finally arrives, he's out of breath, and he can feel the blood pounding in his temples. It’s probably a headache coming on.

There's a small group of people in the atrium, all kneeling in front of terracotta pots: five women and two men, one of whom faces the other six, which probably means that he’s the instructor. Jensen is still a couple of yards away when the guy notices him and gives Jensen a big wave and an even bigger smile. 

“Hey,” the guy says, “you must be Jensen,” and jumps up on his feet. He gives Jensen a big, earth-stained hand to shake and a quick once-over. 

“Yeah,” he drawls, “I think I can see why Loretta sent you here.”

\--

Four weeks later, Jensen pinches his first home-grown basil, rubs the leaf between his fingertips and sniffs, just like Jared told them to. 

“Isn’t that amazing?” Jared asks enthusiastically. “In under a month, y’all grew something you can actually use in the kitchen.” His smile is as genuine as it is contagious. “And just you wait until some of these other herbs are ready. You’ll never want to go back to the dried stuff, I tell you.”

Jensen feels himself nodding and smiling, finding Jared’s eye without meaning to. It’s hard to believe that he was pretty much determined to hate this class when he first started. Now, he looks forward to it every week. Not only because class nicely bookends his Wednesdays, but also because he looks forward to meeting his classmates – and Jared. Surprisingly, he also really likes to dig his fingers into the soil, to make something – grow something – with his own hands.

This is definitely much better than group therapy.

\--

A couple of weeks after that, Jensen caves and brings his first potted plant to work. He's usually not someone who personalizes his desk, and so he feels a little ridiculous and half-expects one of his colleagues – okay, mainly Danneel – to make fun of him, but it doesn’t happen. 

What happens, however, is that Jensen has to smile a little whenever he looks at his little plant, which has to do with the fact that it is thriving, sure, but which might also have to do with the fact that it reminds him of Jared.

\--

After class, Jensen usually lingers a while longer than his classmates to talk to Jared for a bit. The first time it happened, he was a little awkward, but by now, it feels like a habit, natural, for him to help Jared clean up and talk sports for a few minutes before he leaves.

“So,” Jared says, and it sounds casual, but also slightly weird. “Your three months are up, huh?”

For a moment, Jensen doesn’t know what he’s talking about, but then it clicks. His court-mandated time here is over. In the beginning, he thought he’d count the days, but now he didn’t even notice. Jared, however, did.

“Yeah, I guess,” Jensen says, scratching at the back of his neck. “But I think I’m going to finish up the class anyway,” he says, although he hadn’t thought about it at all until just now. “Paid for four months, might as well get my money’s worth.” He shoots Jared a grin.

Jared grins back and lightly slaps him on the back. His hand is big and solid and warm, even through the fabric of Jensen’s shirt.

“Good man,” Jared says. “How about a beer at that bar down the street? Their wings are pretty good, too.”

Jensen is not a guy who says no to wings.

\--

For their final class this semester, Jared invites the whole group over to his house for a barbecue. He provides drinks and meat, and everyone from their class has to bring some sides or marinades made with their own home-grown spices.

Katie's pasta salad with basil, oregano and thyme is amazing, Misha's herb-flavored oils make for pretty good marinades for eggplant and zucchini slices, and Genevieve's homemade Italian crackers are so good that Jensen actually asks her for the recipe, which turns out to be from the Martha Stewart website. 

Adrianne, who’s a self-professed kitchen hazard, made some hard-to-mess-up, but still delicious garlic-and-herbs butter, and Nina and Candice, who are basically joined at the hip, bring homemade pesto. 

Jensen, who had to call his momma in a panic - although he’s not going to admit that here - brings seasoned salt for dry rubbing the meat.

It’s a great afternoon with great food, and most of them promise to sign up for one of Jared’s other classes next semester. 

The sun has set quite some time ago when Jensen finds himself alone at the table with Jared. Most of the others are gone, but Katie and Misha are still wandering around somewhere, although they’ve been MIA for a while.

“You know what I’d like to do?” Jared asks, his eyes a little glassy from the beer and his cheeks red with excitement.

“What?” Even saying only one word, Jensen’s tongue feels heavy.

“Guerilla gardening,” Jared says seriously.

Jensen cracks up. “What?” 

“Guerilla gardening,” Jared repeats. “It’s about taking over abandoned land and making something grow.” He nods with all the earnestness of a determined child. “It’s awesome.”

Jensen still thinks it sounds made up, but before he knows it, there are words coming out of his mouth. “Count me in.”

\--

Turns out Guerrilla gardening really is a thing.

It also turns out that gardening is even more fun when you plan it like you would a spy operation. The first patch of land they plant some shrubs on in a cloak-and-dagger operation – minus the cloak and the dagger, but with more soil and fertilizer – is on Jensen’s way to work, and every time he drives by, it gives him a jolt of pride and makes him smile.

\--

The end of summer is near when Jared and Jensen meet up for beer and food like they do at least once a week. Jensen finally finds the courage to asks Jared something he’s been thinking about for a while. 

“You know that I have that sun room-slash-dining room I don’t really use?” he says and licks some chicken grease from his fingers.

Jared just nods and keeps gnawing on a wing.

“I was thinking that maybe you could give me a few tips, so I can make it a bit greener. Grow some more herbs there, maybe even tomatoes and lemons or something.” Asking this shouldn’t be a big deal, but somehow, it feels like it.

Jared puts his chicken wing down and gives Jensen a big, greasy grin. “That’s a great idea,” he says excitedly. “I can come over this weekend, and we can plan it all out together.” 

Suddenly, Jared lifts his arm and cleans off his mouth with the back of his hand, and for a moment Jensen gets the feeling that Jared’s trying to hide his face. “Only if you’d like to, of course.”

“Of course I’d like to,” he replies, “that’s why I asked you.” He pelts Jared with a balled-up napkin. “You'll bring the ideas, I'll provide pizza and beer.”

\--

Planning out his sun room and working with Jared to make it happen is even more fun than Guerrilla gardening. Because Jensen refuses to take up so much of Jared's time without giving something in return, they wind up alternating between Jensen's place and Jared's garden, putting up raised flower beds for the both of them and building a new tool shed for Jared in between planting and mulching and trips to the garden center. 

Jensen doesn't even question anymore how much he likes it. How much he likes working with his hands, how much he likes working with Jared.

\--

Fall is here, and it's the last week before Jared's new classes start up. Jensen and Jared are putting the finishing touches on Jensen's sun room. It's nice and green with a little lemon tree and raised beds for a variety of herbs. The air smells so fresh in here, and they even put in a small table and four chairs. The place is so welcoming now that Jensen figures they'll have dinner here a lot.

The sun's about to set when they're finally tightening the last screws holding a few hanging baskets in place, and Jensen gets some wine from the fridge. They sit down together on those comfy chairs and look around, admiring their work.

"Damn, this is amazing," Jensen says with a strong feeling of satisfaction and pride. "We should eat dinner in here every day." He clinks glasses with Jared.

Jared gives him a look. "Every day?" he asks, and it makes Jensen realize what he just said.

"I mean," Jensen starts, ready to explain away what he just said, but then he realizes something else, something important.

He starts again. "You're a great friend, Jared," he says, and immediately wants to roll his eyes at himself. "And I think flipping that guy the bird while driving twenty miles above the speed limit was one of the best decisions I've ever made. And not just because he really deserved it." Jensen feels his words getting away from him, but he just keeps on going.

"I think you like me as more than a friend," he says, and it takes a lot of willpower to look Jared in the eye as he says it. "I know I do." He swallows.

"And for a while, I didn't want to say anything, but honestly, I feel like there's a time window closing. And I," he shrugs, "I don't want to see you date someone else. And I don't want to risk you dating someone else when maybe you'd like to date me, too."

There's a shadow right across Jared's face, and it makes his expression pretty much unreadable. Until he gets up, that is, takes Jensen's hands and pulls him to his feet.

They're standing so close that Jensen can smell the sweat on Jared's skin from working on the sun room all afternoon, that he can smell it mingle with that citrus-y aftershave Jared uses that Jensen already knows so well. The skin on Jared's hands is a little rough and dry, but his touch is soft and warm. He cocks his head and leans down until his mouth is only an inch or two from Jensen's.

"I'd like to," Jared says quietly and his thumb rubs a light pattern into the back of Jensen's hand.

"Good," Jensen replies, and his voice comes out a little dry, almost rough. "Now are you going to kiss me or what?"

They're so close that Jensen can feel Jared's laugh rumble through his chest. 

"Still so impatient," Jared says, but then he leans in and touches his lips to Jensen's. 

It's all butterfly kisses at first, little brushes that end as soon as they begin, only making Jensen want more, making him slide his arms around Jared to get closer. Jared's not above using his bulk and height to make Jensen work for it, though, his hands framing Jensen's face and keeping Jensen right where he is whenever Jared pulls back an inch or two. Their bodies, however, are pressed tightly together, sharing heat, and Jensen can feel the tension in Jared's muscles beneath his fingers, can feel Jared's dick against his body, already getting hard.

Soon, Jared adds small licks to their kisses, teasing flicks of his tongue running along the seam of Jensen's mouth. Jensen groans, sliding one leg up and around Jared's thigh, pulling him closer and rubbing their dicks together through their jeans.

"Fuck, Jensen," Jared moans, and then he dives in for the first real kiss. It's messy and wet and Jensen just can't get enough. He's so eager, so greedy for every lick, every bite Jared gives him; so turned on by how fiercely Jared's mouth claims his, how his hands seem to roam all over Jensen's body at once, one huge palm kneading his ass and pulling him hard and harder into Jared, the rub of Jensen's jeans and underwear almost painful against his flesh, but still so fucking good.

He doesn't really know how it happens, but suddenly, Jensen's lying on the tile floor, and Jared roughly shoves Jensen's pants down just far enough to get his dick out. Somehow, Jared must also have managed to get his own jeans off a little, since the next thing Jensen's knows is that Jared's spitting into his own palm and then taking both their dicks in his big, rough, amazing hand. He pulls and strokes and presses their cocks together as he bites and sucks at the juncture of Jensen's neck. And it's not perfect and it's a little uncoordinated, but it's also so hot and fantastic that it makes Jensen come in a ridiculously short amount of time.

Jensen's just opened his eyes again when Jared roughly shoves Jensen's shirt up and strokes himself one, two, three more times before he comes all over Jensen's stomach. _Jesus Fuck._ Jensen only just came, but the idea - and, fuck yeah, the awesome reality - of Jared marking him up like that still makes Jensen's dick twitch.

Jared looks at him, almost sheepish, and says, "Sorry. I got a little caught up in the moment." He probably blushes, too, but with how hot and sweaty they both are right now, it's hard to tell.

"Come down here," Jensen says around a yawn. "I wanna cuddle."

A few minutes later, after Jared chivalrously wiped them both clean with his shirt and then snuggled up to Jensen's side, Jensen is about to drift off to sleep, but then he hears Jared's voice. "Hey Jensen."

"Yeah," Jensen mumbles.

"Does that mean we're going steady now?" Jared asks, laughing a little.

"Idiot," Jensen grumbles and lightly slaps him on the arm.

He presses a kiss to Jared's forehead because that's the only part of Jared he can reach with his lips without really moving. "Of course it does."


End file.
